A New Era Takes Flight - The 2008 Toronto Blue Jays

[gosensgo101]

This dynasty will be simmed using BM09 v.11.10 on Mogul Difficulty. It will be mostly focused on Derek Murphy's life as a GM, but I will include a short summary of each game. I'm using a style mostly borrowed from CatKnight's dynasties, with parts of others'. I will include dialogue with my GM, Newspapers, Talk shows, etc. I will be starting with HGM's opening day rosters, with a few changes (mostly position eligibility for my team). I'll be making a few posts to serve as a summary including House Rules, etc. and then starting. I will likely make 5-10 posts before starting the season as we see how Derek Murphy comes to become the Jays' GM.

[gosensgo101]

HOUSE RULES

Roster Rules

Exclusive Rules (just for my team)

40-Man Roster: I will keep track of this. I must follow all of the applicable rules.
Options: Each player on my club has 3 options which are used up when they're on the 40-man and not on the 25-man or 60-day DL.
Waivers: I can send my players through waivers via the trade block. Reverse order of current standings (previous years' in April) is used. Once I trade them, if they stay on the 25-man roster, they stay on the club, if not, I repeat this for the next interested club.
Disabled List: Player must stay on DL for either 15+ or 60+ days. Players on 60-day DL are not included in the 40-man roster.
Rehab: Once a player recovers from an injury, they will be subject to rehab assignment, at my discretion, depending on the injury (30 day max for pitchers, 20 day max for non-pitchers).
Designated for Assignment: Removed from my 40-Man Roster. Must Waive, Trade or Release or clear waivers and be sent to minors within 10 days.
Minor League Free Agency: Anyone with 6 or more years in pro ball on my team, who's not on the 40-Man Roster may opt out of his contract and become a Minor League FA.
Veterens Concent: At my discretion, players with 5+ years of MLB service may reject minor league assignment.
Playoff Eligiblility: To be eligible for 1st round of playoffs, must be on 25-man Roster or 60-day DL on August 31st. To be eligible for playoffs, must be on 40-Man Roster on August 31st.
10/5 Rule: I will add NTCs to my players who have 10 years of of Major League Service Time while spending his last 5 on my team.

League Wide Rules

Rule 5 Draft: In the offseason, anyone in the Minors 27 years of age or older, will be eligible. I will look through teams, if they are a better option than the current player, the player will be drafted. Using Reverse Draft Order. For my players, After 4 (college) or 5 (high school) years in pro ball, if the player isn't on the 40-Man he'll be eligible. Possible other rules will apply as well.

Competitive Balance

Trades: I can initiate an unlimited amount of trades and make any tweaks to offers, but I will make sure it makes sense for both teams before accepting it. Also, I will keep the number of trades and, especially big name trades realistic.
Revenue Sharing: I will use Major League Revenue Sharing Rules.
FA Compensation: I will use an amendment to the MLB Compensation Rules.
etc.: I may do anything else, including trades and FA signings to help promote competitive balance.

Other

Free Agent Signings: I will use OldFatGuy's FA rules.
Universe: I will make any applicable changes. (i.e. deaths, rule changes, steroid suspensions, new stadiums, relocation, expansion, folding, etc.).
Contract: I maybe be fired at anytime and take up another post (maybe not even GM) in another organization.

[gosensgo101]

40-MAN ROSTER

PITCHERS (19)
*Accardo, Jeremy
Banks, Josh
*Benitez, Armando
*Burnett, A.J.
*Chacin, Gustavo
*Downs, Scott
De Jong, Jordan
*Frasor, Jason
*Halladay, Roy
&Janssen, Casey
League, Brandon
Litsch, Jesse
*Marcum, Shaun
*McGowan, Dustin
Romero, Davis
%Ryan, B.J.
*Tallet, Brian
Vermilyea, Jamie
*Wells, Randy
Wolfe, Brian

CATCHERS (4)
*Barajas, Rod
Diaz, Robinzon
*Thigpen, Curtis
*Zaun, Gregg

INFIELDERS (10)
Adams, Russ
*Eckstein, David
*Hill, Aaron
Inglett, Joe
Luna, Hector
*McDonald, John
*Overbay, Lyle
%Rolen, Scott
*Scutaro, Marco
*Thomas, Frank

OUTFIELDERS (7)
Coats, Buck
*Johnson, Reed
Lind, Adam
*Rios, Alex
*Stairs, Matt
*Stewart, Shannon
*Wells, Vernon

* On Active Roster
% On 15-day DL
& On 60-day DL

[gosensgo101]

RECORDS

[gosensgo101]

STAFF

[gosensgo101]

RESERVED

[gosensgo101]

February 25th, 2008

I can't say that I never dreamt of being involved with a Big League club, but to be honest, I never expected it. I've always played baseball, in fact, I played for the University of Ottawa baseball team. I would start a few games but I was mostly used as a defensive replacement (I was named the best defensive 1B in Canada actually). I never had much offensive ability though; I'd fight for the odd walk, lay down the odd bunt, but it never really amounted to much. Usually, you'd either find me coaching on the bases, or catching in the bullpen, I was really the only good "baseball mind" on the team.

When I graduated, I had the opportunity to play in the CAN-AM league as a defensive replacement/designated bunter/bullpen catcher/coach (the guy actually used that term), but I figured I could make a better living in IT somewhere.

I ended up finding a job, where else but for the Toronto Blue Jays. My job was fairly simple (for someone with a computer science degree): fixing computers, coding some programs, some database work, etc. I got to fix the scoreboard and jumbotron interface once though. I got to talking to numerous people, including the Owner, Ted Rogers and the President and CEO, Paul Godfrey, about baseball, among other things.

Ted nor Paul would go as far as to say they had baseball minds, but they have said, that they know one when they see one. Over the past 10 months I've worked here, Paul has taken a liking to me, to say the least.

One day this February he walked into my office:

Paul: Hi Derek.

Me: Hello Mr. Godfrey.

Paul: Have you ever considered working in management?

Me: Jays management? I can't say I wouldn't like to, but I'm happy with my salary at the moment.

Paul: Well, lets just say that you would be my best payed executive.

Me: What job are you talking about?

Paul: G.M.

Me: **** yeah... I mean, of course I'd be interested.

Paul: Great! I'm in the process of finding an advisor, so to speak, since Ted wouldn't let you just jump into the position blind, and we'll talk together. Here's a plane ticket to Dunedin. I'll meet you there Thursday.

Me: I'll be there.

Paul: Just one more thing: don't let this get out. There's no guarentee you'll get the job.

Me: Your secrets safe with me.

Paul: So I'll see you on Thursday.

Me: I can't wait.

[gosensgo101]

February 28th, 2008

My plane arrived in Dunedin late last night. The perks of being an executive in the baseball world are already showing themselves. After arriving in first class, I was picked up at the airport by a chauffeur and brought to the best hotel in Dunedin.

Of course, I didn't take advantage of the 5-star hotel room and its king size bed, as I didn't get a wink of sleep all night, despite not sleeping much the last few days either. I tried, but I gave up by 3am and decided to go downstairs to the gym and then take a swim.

At 8:50am, ten minutes early, I walked into the conference room, where I expected Paul Godfrey and my "advisor" to be sitting. But, just about anyone of importance in the Blue Jays organization was sitting behind the long wood table. In the middle was the President, Paul Godfrey. On his right was the owner himself, Ted Rogers, and on his left, and empty seat. Joining them behind the table were John Gibbons (Manager), Tony LaCava (Assistant General Manager), Dick Scott (Director of Player Development) and Jon Lalonde (Director of Scouting).

"Good Morning Derek," said Godfrey, extending his hand. "The same to you," I replied, shaking his hand. "I assume you recognize the people here," Godfrey continued. I told him I did, but he introduced each of them anyways.

"...Gord Ash should be arriving shortly," concluding his introductions. At that moment, Gord Ash walked into the room. "Sorry I'm late, lets gets right down to business. This, I assume is the Mr. Murphy you were speaking to me about?"

Godfrey confirmed this with a nod of his head.

"Good, Gord continued, and then turned to me, "First of all, I'd just like to get a feeling of your baseball knowledge. Lets go over the Jays' moves this offseason. Lets say, the Rolen for Glaus deal; what are your impressions?"

I paused, contemplating what to say, "Well, they're quite even as far as skill goes, as well as their knack for getting injured. Glaus definitely has more power though, but Rolen provides a bit better contact swing, a much better glove and comparable power, when healthy. I haven't seen any of the medical reports, but I suspect that the health of the two players had something to do with the deal."

Gord interrupted, "Would you of pulled the trigger?"

Pausing again, I continued, "I'd have to say no. Besides Thomas, the Jays' don't have much of a pure power threat in the lineup. Sure Rios and Wells can hit it out with the best of them, but they're guys who bat in the top of the order. The lineup is less intimidating now."

Gord quickly moved on, asking about the signing of Shannon Stewart. "He's still a good player, don't get me wrong," I replied, "But, I don't really see a need for him, even if Johnson isn't his former self. He, Stairs and Lind are already competent options in Left Field"

"But you can never have enough depth," interjected Assistant General Manager Tony LaCava, leaning forward.

"True," I answered, "But its money better spent elsewhere." Tony sat back in his chair.

"What did you think about the Thomas signing?" Gord asked.

"Well, he was well worth it last year, possibly this year, but I don't think giving him virtually a three year contract, worth nearly $30 Millon was a good idea, he'll be 41 by next May."

"OK, anyone else have something to add?" finished Gord.

"Yes," began Scouting Director Jon Lalonde, "What are your impressions of the past few drafts?"

Didn't expect that to come up. "Last year was a real good draft for the Jays, not just because of the quantity of picks, but most of the picks were high ceiling high schoolers, with good tools, as apposed to solid college kids who likely won't be anything spectacular."

John Gibbons then came into the conversation for the first time, "What do you think the Jays' chances are this year."

"I think they're the best since the glory days," I said, "The pitching staff is spectacular, top to bottom, while the offence isn't that of the BoSox or Yankees, they've got some good potential. If Rios and Hill repeat their strong performance, and Wells and Rolen return to form, they'll be a force to recon with."

"Anything you would change?" asked Gord.

"The only place I really see lacking, is the power category. I would probably look to improve power production at one position. Other than that, catching is really the only spot you could consider weak, but some guys are almost ready, so Zaun and Barajas should be able to last the year."

"Anything else?" Godfrey paused, "No, well, thank you for your time Derek, we'll be in touch.

"Thank you sir," I said as I left.

[gosensgo101]

February 29th, 2008

Last night, to my surprise, I finally got some sleep, In fact, I slept in. I was awoken by a telephone call.

I picked up, Paul Godfrey was on the other end. "Have you eaten yet?" he asked.

I looked at my clock, 10am. "No," I said with a groggy voice, I cleared my throat. "No sir."

"Good, would you care to meet me downstairs in 30 minutes?"

"I'll be there." I hung up.

Twenty-five minutes later, I found Godfrey at the restaurant. "Gord will be joining us in a minute," he said as I sat down.

Again, with great timing, Gord Ash appeared in the restaurant. "Shall we wait for our food or get right to it?" he asked. I think it was a rhetorical question as he continued. "I like how you think. You have a great baseball mind. I saw it myself yesterday and many people, including Mr. Godfrey and your former coaches have attested to this."

"Thank you Mr. Ash," I replied, my heart beating out of my chest.

"You can gold me Gord," he said. I figured that could only be a good sign. "I would hire you in a heartbeat, but of course, my job isn't on the line."

"Mine however is," said Godfrey "Ted told me I could hire whomever I want if I'm willing to risk my job." There was a long silence and then he continued. "For me to do that I have to be confident that you, or whomever else gets the job excels in many categories. The first, obviously is baseball. You have shown that you are quite knowledgeable, yet inexperienced. The second business. Again, knowledgeable, yet inexperienced. That's among many others, too numerous to count. I've thought it over, long and hard..." There was long silence. "...I am willing to risk my job Derek. You are the General Manager of the Toronto Blue Jays."

Wow, I can't believe this is happening. I never thought that this would be possible. General Manager Derek Murphy, it just rolls of the tongue. "Thank-you very much sir, I'll do my best."

"Until you prove yourself, you will report to Mr. Ash. You don't sign, release, trade or waive anyone without his permission. I expect you two to work very closely with each other." said Godfrey.

"Of course, sir." I stuttered.

"Well, I have to go, just sign here...and here...and here," said Godfrey. "Its a one year deal worth 750 thousand if you're wondering, with a team option for a second at one million dollar."

I had a nice salary before, but three quarters of a million dollars. Wow.

"Great, I'll leave you two to discuss whatever you may wish. I'll see you both around."

"Congratulations," said Gord, as Godfrey left.

"Thanks. I've been wondering. You had a good job in Milwaukee, what made you come here? I can't imagine the salary compares."

"True, but its still more than most people could hope for. Anyways, I grew up here, its my home. And my wife likes it too, that's always a big factor. Also, it shouldn't be as demanding a job, I hope, and once you get the hang of things I'll have more free time.

We continued to talk, for quite awhile before we headed down to the training facility where I met the coaching staff, and some of the players, before the press conference to announce my hiring.

We arrived together at the media room and took our seats, beside each other, behind the table. Directly to my right was Paul Godfrey. John Gibbons and team captains Vernon Wells and Roy Halladay were at the table as well. Wells and Halladay both came over to congratulate me. Halladay sounded quite sincere; Wells, well we'll see. Gord and I chatted for a few minutes, as the media filed in. I didn't bother talking to Paul as it appeared he was preparing his speech.

At a little after two (we were supposed to start at two o'clock sharp, but the mic's weren't working) the Press Conference commenced with a short introduction my Godfrey, explaining his reasoning, who I am, and my credentials (however few they may be). Then, it was my turn to talk.

Oops, I hadn't though of what to say. I though that the media was just going to ask me questions. Hmm...what to say, "Ah!" Did I say that out load? "Thank-you Paul. I'd like to start by extending my gratitude to Mr. Godfrey and the Blue Jays' organization for allowing me to realize my dream. I've always dreamt of being involved in professional baseball someway, but I never thought it would actually happen. I look forward to working with Mr. Ash, Mr. Godfrey, Mr. Gibbons and the rest of the staff to bring the playoffs back to Canada, along with, hopefully, some of this warm weather."

The rest all put forward some comments before the floor was opened for questions. Some where quite pointless like TSN's Paul Hollingsworth's "Would competing for a World Series be one of your long term goals?", others were just plain confusing like Sportsnet's play-by-play man Jamie Campbell's "What do you think of being one of the guys?" What? Maybe this applies to Gibby, but I dunno. Others were quite knowledgeable, mostly from Toronto sports writers, the likes of Stephen Brunt and Richard Griffin. These questions actually had something to do with the club like payroll budget, trade opportunities and position battles. Afterwards Jamie Campbell did an interview with me. He's knowledgable, but he just seems to overcomplicate things and ask about topics that are completely pointless. I can't wait until we start the season, these media guys can be annoying.

After the press conference, I went back to my hotel room, opened up my laptop and listened to the Fan590's broadcast of Primetime Sports.

Bob McCown: "...and we're back with Primetime Sports on the Fan590 and Rogers Sportsnet. It's 5:09. Joining me in the studio are Jim Kelley and Jeff Blair. Stephen Brunt and Dan Shulman will be joining us on the phone for somewhere in Florida, being spoiled by warm weather. Incase you've been under a rock for the last, say, three hours, and wondering why so many baseball people, the Blue Jays finally decided to axe General Manager J.P. Ricciardi and hire, a virtually unknown, who goes by the names of Derek Murphy. I'm not exactly what credentials he has, but I guess Ted and co. must have their reasons. And, personally, I don't think anyone can do much worse than J.P. did."

Jim Kelley: "They must've had that mind set since I've heard they even considered you."

Bob: "Wouldn't that be a great story. P. A. Announcer turned GM."

Jeff Blair: "Well its not much of a stretch. I think the new GM was an IT guy and the Sky - Rogers Centre until yesterday."

Bob: "Joining us now are both Dan Shulman and Stephen Brunt from Florida."

Dan Shulman: "Hi Bob"

Stephen Brunt: "Jealous, Bob?"

Bob: "Yes! It's god knows how cold and there's snow up to my head. I knew I should've become a baseball reporter."

Jim: "It'd sure rather going to Florida in the spring than watching the Leafs play every few days."

Bob: "Anyways, lets get back on topic. Stephen you got the chance to speak with this guy. What are your impressions?"

Stephen: "We didn't speak too long, but we spoke long enough for me to see that he's a smart guy, he know's the game of baseball and he's not going to go out and do something stupid."

Jeff: "Mostly due to the presence of Gord Ash right?"

Stephen: "Well, that's part of it, obviously."

Bob: "You worked here when Gord was still around, what do you think of the move to bring him back in a - um - advisory role."

Dan: "First of all, he's a great baseball guy. As a rule, I don't like the idea of bringing and old GM back, but, usually GMs don't leave on a good note. But, I don't think there are any hard feelings there, and he's a Toronto native, so it's different."

Jeff: "I agree, he'll be a great mentor for Murphy."

Bob: "Care to add anything Jim?"

Jim: "As you know, baseball isn't really my thing, but it seems like a bit of an odd move to bring an inexperienced guy into a market like Toronto."

Bob: "Well lets talk about that. Toronto has a bit of a reputation as a GM killer. Look at John Ferguson Jr., for example. He came in without any experience as the guy. It seemed like he made a lot of moves, just for the same of making moves. And even if he didn't make such bad decisions, the Toronto media isn't exactly the most forgiving."

Dan: "The thing is, he's not just inexperienced as a GM, but he's never been a part of baseball management, coaching or playing above the Canadian University level."

Stephen: "Very true. But Gord Ash is here for that very reason."

Jim: "You could argue that Ferguson had Quinn's guidance."

Bob: "I wouldn't say that had a very - um - healthy relationship though, with Ferguson taking Quinn's job as GM. We'll continue after the break. You're listening on the FAN590 and watching on Rogers Sportsnet..."

Comments: Any comments on the style? Did you like how the talkshow was incorporated? Also, for anyone who's reading, input is always appreciatedm whether its just a comment or a questions. I plan on somehow incorporating either a Mailbag, or a call-in show where callers (or posters) can ask questions to Derek, one of the experts, or just about anyone else.

[gosensgo101]

March 1st, 2008

My first day on the job. My office at the spring training complex in Dunedin is quite bland. It consists of a desk, a computer monitor, a keyboard, a mouse and a telephone. What's worse is the computer monitor is one of those old chunky one's, that'll be changed as soon as I can get to Best Buy.

I started by checking my messages. I had 31 messages. One by Godfrey, and one by Rogers, welcoming me to the organization. The rest, were from the other 29 GMs. All of them congratulated me on my hiring, and most, at least implied in some interest. The likes of Brian Cashman even came right out and asked me to phone him back on the price of Halladay and/or Rios. I didn't call him back, nor do I plan on it anytime soon. Others were more polite, but it was still blatantly obvious that they were trying to pry some cheap talent away from an inexperienced GM.

I was disturbed many times in my first, say hour, in my office. One guy came in to set up my computer, I told him I'd handle it (It took me a good 5 minutes to convince him though). A woman who I learned is my secretary kept barging in asking if I needed anything, and various personnel came to introduce themselves.

It was around 10 o'clock when I had finally listened to all my messages, set up my computer and was at a loss of what to do when there was yet another knock on the door. "Its Gord" said the man on the other side of the door, who I assumed was, well, Gord. Miraculously my hunch was correct.

"All moved in yet?" he asked.

"Well its not a mess yet is it? Seriously, yeah I've got everything set up." I replied.

"Get any GMs trying to find a bargain." he asked.

"All 29." I grinned.

"Well then, lets get to work. Anything legit?" he continued.

"Not in particular. Some interest in some of AAA depth, especially our pitching, but that's the extent of it. I want to see them pitch in spring training first though. I'll keep them in mind come time to make the rosters." I answered.

"Good, good. Today, just take it easy, get used to it. I'll explain the day-to-day duties - did you check the waiver wire yet?" he added

"Yup, it was being faxed in when I got here. Nothing of note. I haven't found any of the scouting reports yet though." I replied.

"Hmm, they're probably on the computer if you boot it up I'll look for it. By the way, we're having lunch with John Monday to discuss the roster. On Tuesday we'll be eating with Dick Scott and Jon Lalonde to discus the minor leagues."

"Sounds good," I said. "Computer's ready."

[gosensgo101]

March 3rd, 2008

Sure, its been great, but, so far I haven't done much. Gord's told me about how to submit a trade, the waiver wire system and all that good stuff, but I haven't really gotten the chance to talk baseball. Today, however, that will change.

At 11:30, Gord, John and myself walked over to the restaurant. After we ordered, we got down to business:

Me: Lets get started. Obviously we've got Rios in Right, Wells in Centre, Rolen at third, Hill at second, Overbay at first and Thomas at DH.

John: Yup, Zaunie and Barajas will share the duties at Catcher.

Gord: How much time will they each get?

John: Not sure yet, depends on their performance.

Me: How's short going to break down?

John: Eckstein the starter.

Me: You going to use McDonald as a defensive replacement? with ground ball pitchers?

John: We'll see. I haven't seen him field much.

Me: I assure you he's not any better than McDonald.

John: We'll see.

Gord: Left field is an interesting spot.

Me: Indeed.

John: I'd like to platoon either Lind or Stairs with either Stewart or Johnson.

Me: OK. If Lind's not starting I don't want him coming off the bench.

John: Why not? He'd be a great bad off the bench.

Gord: I agree with Derek. If he's not getting consistent playing time I want him starting in Triple-A.

Me: Lets look at the bench. We've got either Zaun and Barajas along with McDonald and Scutaro. Then I guess 2 outfielders.

Gord: So if Lind starts we keep either Reed or Stew to platoon and Stairs as a Pinch hitter.

John: What makes you think we'll have a 5 man bench?

Me: Because I said so.

John: I prefer a 4 man bench better.

Gord: Again, I agree with Derek. Especially with this club, a 14th batter will do more than a 12th pitcher.

John: I've always used a 12 man pitching staff.

Me: I beg to differ. Last year your 12th pitcher would go weeks without pitching.

John: But its always good to have more pitching.

Gord: We'll re-evaluate later, but for now lets assume we're going with a 5 man bench.

Me: Where were we? Ah yes. If Lind starts, we keep Stairs and either Stew or Reed on the bench.

John: Fair enough.

Me: If Stairs starts, we keep at least one of Stew and Johnson.

John: With the extra spot we should consider Fasano. J.P. promised him a spot on the big league roster.

Gord: With Barajas and Zaun I don't see him playing much.

Me: Anyways, I'd like to keep Johnson and Stewart if possible. Johnson's been great in the past and has looked good so far this spring. Besides, if we don't keep Johnson we've only got 2 outfielders that I'd trust defensively late in a game.

Gord: Shannon's got good range.

Me: But no arm.

John: What about the other possibilities? Diaz, Thigpen, Adams, Inglet, Lopez, Coats, Watson? The list goes on and on.

Me: Neither Coats nor Watson are going to beat out Reed or Stew, as they're outfielders. As for the others, again, I'd rather Reed or Stew.

Gord: Let's talk about pitching.

Me: Halladay, Burnett, McGowan and Marcum. Who's number 5 Gibby?

John: I'm leaning towards stretching out Janssen, especially with an 11 man staff. If not it'll either be Litsch or Chacin.

Gord: So we'll see how they perform this spring?

John: Yup.

Me: OK, then in the pen we've got B.J.-

John: - if he's ready.

Me: Along with Accardo, Downs and Frasor. Then we've got 2 spots.

Gord: One has to be a long man. Either Chacin, Wells, Banks or Parrish.

Me: One, maybe two spots then. Janssen if he's not in the rotation I'd assume.

John: Yup.

Me: If B.J. can't start the season, who takes his place?

John: I'd like League if he regains his form.

Me: If he regains his form he'll be great. If he doesn't, the we've got a boatload to choose from: Wolfe, Benitez, Carlson, Camp, De Jong, Kane, Murphy, Carter, etc.

John: Yup, we'll see how the spring goes.

Gord: Agreed.

Me: Looks like we're going to have some decisions to make.

Gord seemed to back me on most things. That's definitely a good thing. As for Gibby, the jury's out on him. While he may not see things the way I do, he's, apparently, a guy the players like as their manager, and he seems knowledgeable. But I'd rather someone with a different philosophy. His sometimes makes it seem like he doesn't know what he's talking about.

[Arctic Blast]

Really well done, gosensgo. You absolutely NAILED a typical Primetime Sports segment, by the way. Dead bang.

[stl2006cardinal]

Great job.. Good luck taking down Boston and New York.

[CatKnight]

Excellent start! I enjoyed the news segment, and your preseason meeting was very interesting. Good show!

Taking down the Sox and Yanks though...that's going to take some effort.

[gosensgo101]

All: Thanks for the feedback. Any and all is always appreciated.

Arctic: Glad you enjoyed it. While on the subject of Bob McCown, I really like the way he thinks. Look for him to become more involved in the story line later on.

cardinal: Thanks. I have a feeling I might need it. Or maybe their jet might crash one stormy day, who knows.

Cat: Thanks, I'll be using different types of media throughout. Primetime sports will likely be involved quite a bit. I'll likely include news articles, interviews, etc. I'd like to incorporate a mailbag type feature. So if you guys have any questions for Murph or others, just post them and I'll encorporate them. As for catching the beasts of the east, it'll be tough.

March 4th, 2008

Yay! More Baseball talk!

Now that the 3 year old baseball fan in me has let himself out lets get down to business. Aside from the meeting with John and Gord yesterday, its just been more of getting acclimatized to the job.

Yesterday afternoon, I saw my assistant General Manager for the first time. His name is Tony LaCava. He's held his position for a few years now, working under J.P. He popped by to get me up to date on what J.P. had in the works before. Nothing much really, just some preliminary talks about some minor league depth. He didn't really elaborate much, and he was in a grumpy mood.

I don't blame him though, he was looked over for a virtual nobody for one of the best jobs in baseball. I hope he cheers up though, I'm bound to get bored of bouncing ideas off of Gord Ash's big bald head eventually.

I met with Gord along with Dick Scott (Director of Player Development) and Jon Lalonde (Director of Scouting) for lunch. We met at the same restaurant again. I can't complain though its by far the best restaurant in town. This time we small talked for awhile before diving into things.

Me: ...Well, I think time we talk some baseball.

Gord: By all means.

Me: So who do you guys have as our top prospects?

Dick: Currently, or down the line?

Me: Who has the best potential?

Jon: For the batters, I'd have to say Travis Snider (RF). He's a...

Me: No need to go into detail, I'm familiar with most of the prospects.

Dick: Great. Then, you'll know that he's got a great bat, but not too good in the field.

Me: That's what I've heard.

Gord: I'm assuming Kevin Ahrens (3B) must be close to him when taking defence into account.

Jon: Of course! He's got a good bat, from both sides as well.

Dick: And he's made a terrific transition to the hot corner as well.

Me: What are your guys takes on the rest of last year's picks?

Jon: Justin Jackson (SS) and John Tolisano (2B) are two high school kids who we're high on. Tolisano's a guy who's solid all around, while Jackson is one of those risk/reward type guys.

Gord: So he'll either be a superstar or a good pinch runner?

Dick: More or less. He's got great tools. Great speed, can throw 94 mph off the mound and has tremendous range. The only question is his bat.

Jon: If he can adjust to pro pitching he'll be great.

Me: Eric Eiland (CF) is the same type of thing as well right?

Dick: Yep. Great tools, we'll just have to see if he harnesses them.

Gord: How about Arencibia?

Jon: He's always been a good hitter, and always will. He's got a good arm from behind the plate, but it remains to be seen how he handles a pitching staff. He's had a history of back injuries as well.

Me: OK. Anyone else on the offensive side worth mentioning?

Jon: Yes, 19 year old leftfielder Yohermyn Chavez. We signed him out of Venezuela a few years ago. This will be his 3rd year of pro ball already.

Gord: How's he coming around?

Dick: He's got good pop in his bat, the rest remains to be seen though. Latin players are hard to predict. He could be a superstar, he could be a bust.

Gord: What's happening with Robinzon Diaz and Curtis Thigpen (both catchers)?

Dick: They should start the season splitting time in AAA. We're considering moving one to another position.

Me: Thigpen played all over in college right?

Jon: Correct, and Diaz has played some 2nd and some 3rd in his career.

Gord: Who do you think has the better future behind the plate?

Dick: I'd say Diaz, he's a great contact hitter and a solid glove back there. As for Thigpen, his arm has been a bit of a question, but he's a good receiver back there. He's got a little more power than Diaz though.

Me: Howabout on the mound?

Dick: Lefty Brett Cecil is a guy we're trying to stretch out. He was an outstanding closer in college with his Fastball/Slider combination. He drew some comparisons to B.J. Ryan. If he can develop some secondary pitches, he'll be a very nice starter. If not he'll still be an excellent reliever.

Jon: Trystan Magnuson is another one of last year's draft picks. He's got a nice lively fastball.

Gord: How are former first round picks Ricky Romero and David Purcey doing?

Dick: Romero's run into some trouble with injuries over the past few years. We've yet to see what a healthy Romero can do. He's got great stuff, but he needs to be able to harness it to be successful. He should become a middle of the rotation guy.

Me: Purcey?

Dick: He had an excellent AFL season in the fall. If he can repeat that he could become a solid starter, but he might end up in the pen because he's a high strikeout, high walk type pitcher.

Me: Anyone else?

Jon: Kyle Ginley could become a solid starter.

Gord: Thanks for your time gentlemen.

Thank god for last year's draft. Snider's really the only legitimate prospect not drafted last year (Arencibia, Ahrens, Jackson, Tolisano, Eiland, Cecil and Magnuson were all draft picks last year along with Brad Mills and Alan Farina who weren't discussed) (Toronto has IIRC 7 picks in the first 90 last year). We've got a nice future infield, and a few good pitchers. With the Outfield and most of the Rotation set for quite a while, that's fine. I hope all of these risk/reward guys pan out.

Comments: I hope that gave you guys a nice look into the Blue Jays farm system. On another note, I'm debating whether or not to include ratings in my write-ups. Without them, its realistic, but there's no real way of judging, say, trades when Minor Leaguers are included unless I atleast include peak ratings. I'm thinking of either just including peaks for minor leaguers, and using stats for big leaguers. Or, I'm thinking that I'll show ratings for players that aren't on the Jays, and give scouting reports, or something for players on my players. (That probobly didn't come out too well, I hope its clear enough) What do you guys think?